Author: Lauren Oliver
Published: 2010
Genre: Fiction
Genre: Fiction
Rating: 3 out of 5
This is my first book by Lauren Oliver. This book was recommended by Goodreads and after reading the description, decided to read it. "What if you only had one day to live? What would you do?" caught my attention.
Samantha Kingston (Sam), Ally, Elody, and Lindsay are a group of friends and are popular (in a mean way) in their high school. Sam has a boyfriend Rob and a good friend Kent. All the girls bully Juliet Sykes. February 12th, which is a 'Cupid Day' should have been like any ordinary day for Sam. All of them attend the party at Kent's home that night and end up in a car accident. Then Sam wakes up, only to find out, it's Friday, February 12 again. Sam goes through the same experience of the same dream six more times and tries to analyze the meaning behind her experience and the actions of everyone around her including herself.
Lauren Oliver has a keen insight and a brutal view of high school life including friendship, bullying, cruelty, and carelessness of kids. The first few chapters were not particularly interesting, but in the later chapters, as Sam tries to perfect her last day and analyze people and situations, it gets interesting. Sam tries to perfect her last day by doing things differently to her family, friends, and herself.
The plot was good but felt it was a bit draggy. The story left me thinking, that anyone could go through that, even grownups and it’s never too late to change anything. Even as grownups, we tend to hold anger and grudge towards someone, and if we really think and analyze the situation, people, and ourselves, I am sure one is able to let go of all the bitter feelings.
I would recommend this book mostly to young adults. I am interested to read more books by this author.
Forgot to mention – On page 50, it says “like when you hear thunder and know that any second you’ll see lightning tearing across the sky”. As far as I know, it’s the lightning which comes first, then the thunder! Light travels faster than sound.
Favorite lines from the book :
This is my first book by Lauren Oliver. This book was recommended by Goodreads and after reading the description, decided to read it. "What if you only had one day to live? What would you do?" caught my attention.
Samantha Kingston (Sam), Ally, Elody, and Lindsay are a group of friends and are popular (in a mean way) in their high school. Sam has a boyfriend Rob and a good friend Kent. All the girls bully Juliet Sykes. February 12th, which is a 'Cupid Day' should have been like any ordinary day for Sam. All of them attend the party at Kent's home that night and end up in a car accident. Then Sam wakes up, only to find out, it's Friday, February 12 again. Sam goes through the same experience of the same dream six more times and tries to analyze the meaning behind her experience and the actions of everyone around her including herself.
Lauren Oliver has a keen insight and a brutal view of high school life including friendship, bullying, cruelty, and carelessness of kids. The first few chapters were not particularly interesting, but in the later chapters, as Sam tries to perfect her last day and analyze people and situations, it gets interesting. Sam tries to perfect her last day by doing things differently to her family, friends, and herself.
The plot was good but felt it was a bit draggy. The story left me thinking, that anyone could go through that, even grownups and it’s never too late to change anything. Even as grownups, we tend to hold anger and grudge towards someone, and if we really think and analyze the situation, people, and ourselves, I am sure one is able to let go of all the bitter feelings.
I would recommend this book mostly to young adults. I am interested to read more books by this author.
Forgot to mention – On page 50, it says “like when you hear thunder and know that any second you’ll see lightning tearing across the sky”. As far as I know, it’s the lightning which comes first, then the thunder! Light travels faster than sound.
Favorite lines from the book :
- Some things are better left buried and forgotten.
- Most of the time, one night blends into the next, and weeks blend into weeks and months into other months. And sooner or later, we all die.
- A good friend keeps your secrets for you. A best friend helps you keep your own secrets.
- Here’s another thing to remember; hope keeps you alive. Even when you’re dead, it’s the only thing that keeps you alive.
- That’s the best thing about best friends. That’s what they do. They keep you from spinning off the edge.
- It amazes me how easy it is for things to change, how easy it is to start off down the same road you always take and wind up somewhere new. Just one false step, one pause, one detour, and you end up with new friends or a bad reputation or a boyfriend or a breakup. It’s never occurred to me before; I’ve never been able to see it. And it makes me feel, weirdly, like maybe all of these different possibilities exist at the same time, like each moment we live has a thousand other moments layered underneath it that look different.
- So many things become beautiful when you really look.
- I shiver, thinking about how easy it is to be totally wrong about people – to see one tiny part of them and confuse it for the whole, to see the cause and think it’s the effect or vice versa.
- The scariest secret of all, the part we’re trying to forget.
- Sometimes I’m afraid of what I’m leaving behind.
- I guess that’s what saying goodbye is always like – like jumping off an edge. The worst part is making the choice to do it. Once you’re in the air, there’s nothing you can do but let go.
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